Minami Levonowich is a woman of the world. She was born in England to a Japanese mother and American father. As a child she lived in England, Russia, Switzerland and the United States. Today she lives in Japan and works in Taiwan.
It must be difficult for friends and family to keep up with her!
Levonowich is a professional golfer whose journey includes being part of the University of Kansas women's golf team. But today she plays primarily on the Taiwan LPGA Tour. From her current home base in Japan, Minami is able to play tournaments across Asia, not just Taiwan but also Korea, China and Southeast Asia.
At recent tournaments in the Philippines, Minami was excited to find four fellow Kansas Jayhawks playing those events, too. It "blew my mind because no other school came even close to that," she said.
Levonowich's itinerant childhood serves her golf well today, she believes: "Since I grew up playing golf in 'European' weather, I feel like my golf style is good for harsh, windy conditions, and maybe that’s why I fit well in Kansas and Taiwan because it's also known to be very windy there."
Her family ultimately moved to the United States so Minami could pursue golf more seriously at the IJGA golf academy in South Carolina. She spent her high school years there, which led to the scholarship offer from Kansas. Her senior season at KU was 2014-15.
Living in Japan now and playing tournaments across Asia has opened up other opportunities for her, too. She's done some modeling and has appeared on multiple television shows.
One of those TV shows was the KLPGA-themed Cinderella Story, a Big Break-style competition for golfers from various Asian countries (plus Minami, who represented the U.S.) competing for opportunities to play in Korea.
"We spent about two days in Seoul at this amazing hotel called Paradise City where we filmed the title screen, and then we flew to Malaysia and did all the challenges," she said. "It was one of the best experiences of my life and those 11 girls became like family to me since we did almost everything together."
One of the results of her television time is that Minami is now sometimes recognized by fans who've seen her on TV. "It still feels so new to me, so when people come up to me saying they saw me on TV, I get so shocked," she said.
What does the future hold for Levonowich? She'd love to make it onto the Japan LPGA: "That has always been my dream from when I was in college. However, it’s one of the harder tours to get into." She's also establishing a recruiting business, matching young Japanese golfers with American colleges.
A return to the U.S. is something she looks forward to, too.
"I love the U.S. and eventually I want to move back, but for now there are just too many opportunities for me here."
One of those opportunities comes up in February, when Minami plans to take a shot at another tour, playing the China LPGA's Q-School.
You can follow Minami's journey on Instagram (@ minami.levonowich) and Twitter (@MinamiAnna93).
